Hello, I’m on the last legs of my Ls swap into my 87 but I’ve been struggling with the clutch for a while, can’t figure out the issue. So quick run down I have a 5.3 ls bolted onto the original 1987 borg warner t5, the clutch setup is a ls1 pressure plate and a Chevy van clutch(needed for the 14 spline tranny) I have a new but stock master cylinder powering a Howe t5 hydraulic throw out bearing(part#82876) I have shimmed it correctly to where I have about a 1/4 space between the clutch fingers and the bearing. Although it’s seemingly set up correctly I can’t get the clutch to disengage while in gear. I can see into the bell housing and have video of it fully pressing the finger down. Does anyone have any idea what I should look for? I’d appreciate any help, I need to get this car moved to a new location and it would be nice to have it go there under its own power. I’ll answer any questions you guys have I can provide pictures/videos if needed. Thank you

 

When I did my dual disk it had 0.189". I think clearance is supposed to be between 0.150 and 0.200". If your at 0.250" it may not have enough travel to fully release it. Did you index the bell housing? That can cause shifting issues. I don't think anyone indexed stock bells but when you're mixing parts /using aftermarket parts it's much more of an issue. Prior to pulling things a part, I'd make sure the hydros don't have any air. If your t5 has 14 splines it's from a v6 car. IDK how well it's gonna do behind a LS for numerous reasons.

 

Howe may recommend .250 but I would have tried 0.125 at this point.

You're missing details. Did you use the extended pilot bushing? A 621 or Lakewood for upright transmission mounting? Flat 97-2006 LS1 flywheel?

Your clutch disc may be thicker than an LS1 disc. That's gonna prevent release. Call around with the goal to take the C&FW assy. to a shop that rebuilds big truck clutches and brakes. They'll be able to tell you if the parts work together. And if you need a custom disc, they can make it.

 

Making those post was really bad timing because I went back out to try again and got it to work. Not sure what I did to make it work but I put some more force behind it and felt it break loose. I’m thinking the clutch assembly must’ve been rusted in some way. I’ll leave this post up so I can update when I take the car on its maiden voyage here in a couple weeks.

 

. If your t5 has 14 splines it's from a v6 car. IDK how well it's gonna do behind a LS for numerous reasons.[/QUOTE]

So my car was an originally a 2.8v6 with the t5. I understand the risk with a t5 behind a ls, but my motors stock and it was either spend a few hundred to make the t5 work or a few thousand on a t56. I understand there’s more options but I never wanted to go automatic

 

[QUOTE=jmd;6554998
You're missing details. Did you use the extended pilot bushing? A 621 or Lakewood for upright transmission mounting? Flat 97-2006 LS1 flywheel?

[/QUOTE]

im using the pilot bushing that came with my ls1 clutch kit. I only realized that the input shafts on the t5 and t56 are different diameter. Might have to pull it all out again but I’m just trying to get this car moving enough to get on a trailer. As for getting it to set up right; I used a 621 bellhousing I found on Amazon for about 100 bucks. And im using the stock crossmember with slight modifications to get it to work. Though I haven’t figured out the torque arm yet, there doesn’t appear to be anyway to get the stock mount to work when the tranny is sitting straight. If you guys have any suggestions I’ll take it

 

So you'll need an aftermarket crossmember w the torque arm mount on the cross member. That should fix that. The rest of it sounds like you're gonna have some potential issues W the mixing of parts.

 

T5 and T56 have.the same pilot end size. The lengths can differ depending on application. If you do pull it out, measure to make sure the pilot end is supported in the bushing. I think you're okay with a V6 T5 of that year but check if you pull it. If not, the trans. and shifting won't be happy.

Another concern is the made overseas 621. Do a runout check on the center bore of the bell. This too, can hurt shifting if it is off. And again IIRC, the bore is correctly sized for the T5, but it's another item to check if it comes out.

 

You're close! Try a longer pushrod or larger bore master cylinder.